Feed control for stuffer crimper



Nov. 21,1967 v. H. SCHRADER FEED CONTROL FOR STUFFER CRIMPER Filed Oct. 18, 1965 INVENTOR V/CTO/Q JC/I/PADE Q.

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,353,242 FEED CONTROL FGR STUFFER CRIMPER Victor H. Schrader, Wilmington, De-l., assignor to Joseph Bancroft & Sons (10., Wilmington, DeL, a corporation of Delaware Filed Oct. 18, 1965, Ser. No. 497,021 4 Claims. (Cl. 281) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLGS'URE A stutter crimper having feed rolls driven by a belt, the tension of which is controlled by an idler roll. The idler is mounted on a pivoted arm, one end of which rests upon the core of crimped yarn in the stutter crimper. The movement of the arm causes the idler to vary the tension of the belt in a manner to maintain the core at a constant level. The arm is loaded by a variable weight to control the back pressure.

This invention relates to stuffer crimpers and more particularly to control means for the feed rolls of a stutter crimper.

An object is to provide improved means for controlling the drive of such feed rolls in response to the height of the mass of crimped yarn in the crimper chamber.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent as the nature of the invention is more fully disclosed.

The nature of the invention will be better understood from the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which a specific embodiment has been set forth for purposes of illustration.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a vertical section of a stutter crimper embodying the invention; and

FIG. 2 is a partial vertical section taken on the line 22 of FIG. 1.

Referring to the drawing more in detail the invention is shown as embodied in a stuffer crimper comprising a block mounted on a base 11 and having a vertical bore carrying a tube 12 which forms the crimping chamber which may be circular or rectangular in cross-section. A pair of feed rolls 14 and 15 are disposed at the lower end of the tube 12 and form a bite adapted to feed a yarn 16 into the tube 12 to be folded over and crimped against the mass of previously crimped yarn in said chamber. The yarn 16 is fed from a cop 17 through a guide 18 to the bite of the rolls 14 and 15 and may be preheated if de sired by a preheating device, not shown. The crimping chamber may be heated by suitable means shown as heating elements 13.

The feed roll 14 is mounted on a shaft 20 which is journaled in pivoted arms 21 carried by the block 10. The feed roll 15 is mounted on a shaft 22 which is journalled in the block 10. The shafts 20 and 22 are geared together for controlled counter rotation in unison and the feed rolls are held in pressure contact with the yarn by a cable 26 attached to the pivoted arms 21 and carrying a weight 27.

The feed rolls are driven by a belt 31 from a drive pulley 32 which is driven at a constant speed. The belt 31 passes around a fixed idler pulley 33 and a control pulley 34 and is connected to engage and drive a pulley 35 on the shaft 22 for driving the feed rolls.

The controll pulley 34 is mounted on the lower end of an arm 41 which is pivoted at 42 to a bracket 43 and is formed with an upper end 45 which is narrow in section and extends through a slot 46 in the tube 12 to rest upon the upper end of the mass of crimped yarn in the tube. The crimped yarn is withdrawn from the tube through a tension gate 47 to a constant speed winder not shown.

The counterweight 50 is threaded for adjustment on 3,353,242 Patented Nov. 21, 1967 ice a pin 53 which is attached to the lower end of the arm 41 and the horizontal portion 45 of the arm 41 carries an adjustable weight 51 which is adapted to be moved over a scale 52 on the arm 45. The weight 51 is adapted to vary the pressure exerted by the arm 45 on the core of crimped yarn in the tube 12 from substantially zero to a predetermined value as indicated on the scale 52.

In the operation of this device, the end 45 of the arm 41 rises and falls according to variations in the height of the mass of crimped yarn in the crimping tube 12. When the end of the arm 41 is raised, the control pulley 34 is retracted in a direction to reduce the tension of the belt 31 so as to increase the slippage and reduce the rate of rotation of the feed rolls 14 and 15. As the level of the crimped yarn falls due to the decreased rate of feed, the arm 41 pivots in a direction to advance the control pulley 34 so as to increase the tension of the belt 31 and thereby decrease the slippage of the belt and correspondingly increase the rate of rotation of the feed rolls. In practice the adjustment may be made sufliciently sensitive to maintain the level of the crimped yarn in the chamber substantially constant. In this way the crimp characteristics remain substantially constant.

The arm 41 may be balanced by adjustment of counterweight 50 to cause the end 45 thereof to apply a predetermined pressure on the core of yarn in the crimping tube for thereby controlling the back pressure in the crimping zone and the resultant crimp amplitude.

While the variable control has been shown as applied to the drive of the feed rolls, it is to be understood that the system can be applied to vary the rate of withdrawal of the yarn from the crimping chamber, if desired, in which case the feed rolls would be driven at a constant speed and the variable speed drive applied to delivery rolls which extract the crimped yarn from the chamber or to the winder.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for crimping yarn comprising a member having walls forming a crimping chamber, feed rolls disposed to feed yarn for crimping into one end of said chamber, drive means including a belt and a drive pulley disposed to drive said feed rolls, a control pulley disposed to control the tension of said belt, a pivoted arm carrying said control pulley, said arm having an end extending through said wall into said crimping chamber to rest upon the mass of crimped yarn therein and said end of said arm effecting pivotal movement of said arm in response to a change in the level of said mass so as to vary the tension of said belt and the consequent rate of feed to maintain the mass of crimped yarn in said chamber at a substantially constant level.

2. Crimping apparatus as set forth in claim 1 in which means is provided for withdrawing said yarn from said chamber at a constant rate.

3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1 in which said walls are provided with a vertical slot through which said arm extends to rest upon the mass of crimped yarn in said chamber.

4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 1 in which said arm carries an adjustable weight for controlling the pressure exerted by said arm on the yarn in said chamber.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,740,992 4/1956 Shattuck 19-66 2,760,252 8/1956 Shattuck 281 3,023,481 3/1962 Scragg 2872 3,200,466 8/1965 Duga et al. 2872 MERVIN STEIN, Primary Examiner.

I. C. WADDEY, JR., Assistant Examiner. 

1. APPARATUS FOR CRIMPING YARN COMPRISING A MEMBER HAVING WALLS FORMING A CRIMPING CHAMBER, FEED ROLLS DISPOSED TO FEED YARN FOR CRIMPING INTO ONE END OF SAID CHAMBER, DRIVE MEANS INCLUDING A BELT AND A DRIVE PULLEY DISPOSED TO DRIVE SAID FEED ROLLS, A CONTROL PULLEY DISPOSED TO CONTROL THE TENSION OF SAID BELT, A PIVOTED ARM CARRYING SAID CONTROL PULLEY, SAID ARM HAVING AN END EXTENDING THROUGH SAID WALL INTO SAID CRIMPING CHAMBER TO REST UPON THE MASS OF CRIMPED YARN THEREIN AND SAID END OF SAID ARM EFFECTING PIVOTAL MOVEMENT OF SAID ARM IN RESPONSE TO A CHANGE IN THE LEVEL OF SAID MASS SO AS TO VARY THE TENSION OF SAID BELT AND THE CONSEQUENT RATE OF FEED TO MAINTAIN THE MASS OF CRIMPED YARN IN SAID CHAMBER AT A SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT LEVEL. 